You guys. Shucks, thank you for all the congrats last post! Back again, and the missus and I are mostly just shocked that it’s over, whoa that was fast awesome. (And yes, she’s definitely a Potterhead. Along with many other nerdly things. Though she’s more of a Tolkien buff—I am constantly schooled on elvish.)
And now we get to the introduction of my favorite character! And death omens. Which are always great. It’s time for Chapters 5 and 6 of The Prisoner of Azkaban—The Dementor and Talons and Tea Leaves.
Index to the reread can be located here! Other Harry Potter and Potter-related pieces can be found under their appropriate tag. And of course, since we know this is a reread, all posts might contain spoilers for the entire series. If you haven’t read all the Potter books, be warned.
Chapter 5—The Dementor
Summary
Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys pile into the Ministry cars and head to King’s Cross Station. Before Harry boards the Hogwarts Express, Mr. Weasley takes him aside with the intent on warning him about Sirius Black. Harry tells him that he already heard the previous night, but Arthur is insistent that Harry not go looking for Black, which confuses the boy. He wants to tell Ron and Hermione what he’s found out, so they find the only uncrowded train car, housing the presumed new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher—R. J. Lupin. He’s dead asleep, and nothing seems to stir him for the majority of the ride.
Ron and Hermione are very concerned at the knowledge that Black is after Harry. The sneakoscope goes off in their car, so Harry stuffs it further into his luggage. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle come in to badger them, but Lupin’s presence puts them off. Shortly before they get to the school, the train suddenly stops and is boarded. The lights go out, Ginny and Neville clamber into their car, and a tall robed figure comes to the door. Professor Lupin wakes up just in time to confront the thing and send it packing, but Harry gets cold, hears screaming in the distance, and passes out.
When he wakes, Lupin passes out chocolate as a remedy, and informs the kids that the creature was a dementor—one of the Azkaban prison guards. Harry is disturbed to find that he was the only one who seems to have fainted, though the kids have all been affected to various degrees. Malfoy finds out about Harry’s reaction from a concerned Neville and immediately starts teasing. The kids board horseless (Harry reckons the horses are invisible) carriages and head up to the castle. Harry and Hermione are called aside by McGonagall; she has asked for Madam Pomfrey to attend Harry after hearing he fainted from Lupin, but Harry insists he’s fine. Hermione has a private chat with McGonagall about her course schedule.
The two miss the Sorting, but make it in time for the feast and a few announcements. Dumbledore explains the dementors will be providing extra security on the Hogwarts grounds, and warns the students not to provoke them, or attempt to sneak past them (even with an invisibility cloak, he stealthily adds). He announces Professor Lupin’s new position as the DADA teacher, and then announces Hagrid’s new additional job as the Care of Magical Creatures professor. The trio congratulate a tearful Hagrid after dinner, then head up to bed.
Commentary
I’d forgotten that Ginny’s already showing more gusto in this book. She and Harry share a laugh over Percy’s pomp when the new Head Boy sees Penelope on the platform, and she has no problem snapping on Ron when he tells her to get lost on the train. And of course, she seems to be the only one who comes close to Harry’s terror over the dementors; we don’t yet understand why at this point in the narrative, but looking back we know that she’s likely remembering what it felt like to be possessed by Riddle. So you know, that’s great.
Harry gets all happy when Mrs. Weasley gives him an extra hug before getting on the train because HARRY WAS NEVER HUGGED AS A CHILD, and Mrs. Weasley is treating him like one of her own, and if that’s not the saddest thing I can think of, I just don’t know, I’m very emotional, don’t look at me.
Mr. Weasley warns Harry not to look for Sirius Black, which is confusing at the time, but a hint toward Black’s history with the Potter family. Then the Sneakoscope goes off in the train compartment. We have to presume that it’s because of Scabbers… but then why wouldn’t it go off constantly in his presence? Here’s my theory: the Sneakoscope is picking up on the thoughts of people around it. You know when you’re doing something untrustworthy (hence it going off when Ron uses Errol to send Harry his present, because he knows he’s not supposed to use the owl). The trio are talking about Sirius, which means that Peter is listening to them talk about the man he framed for murder—bam, the Sneakoscope goes off. He’s recalling when he did something untrustworthy, so the thing starts to flare up.
Ron and Hermione start talking about Hogsmeade, resulting in a hilarious aside from Ron about the Honeydukes sweet shop, and the first official mention of the Shrieking Shack, “the most haunted building in Britain.” We will find out what makes it so haunted much later. There’s also a brief name drop of the 1612 goblin rebellion, and I want more information about that, gosh darnit.
Pointless aside: Lupin’s suitcase reads “Professor R. J. Lupin,” but I find it hard to believe that he’s taught anywhere else, given his particular condition. Yet the case is old and tattered and the letters are peeling. I presume that even if he altered the label with magic it would continue to look old? Magic rarely changes the quality of the thing, so perhaps that’s it.
I’m really just rambling on to avoid jumping up and down like a lunatic, and all-capsing at everyone about how my favorite character just showed up and you should all be prepared for me to gush over him from now on. Seriously. Teenage me was completely in love with Remus Lupin from the start. It helps that he has an instantly soothing demeanor right at his introduction. Also that he has a wry sense of humor (“I haven’t poisoned that chocolate, you know…”). And hands out chocolate.
Because he’s looking so rough, it’s safe to assume that he’s just come off a werewolf transformation, which must be an awesome note to start your new job on. Obviously, he knows he’s going to be teaching Harry, but imagine what it must have been like to wake up on the train, only to find your dead friend’s son sitting right across the way, looking just like him. The fact that he keeps everything together so effortlessly is a testament to exactly the sort of character he is; staid, level-headed, accustomed to more than his fair share of torment. He sics that patronus on the dementor with zero hesitation or difficulty because this isn’t an alien scenario to him.
Speaking of dementors… they are constantly compared to the LOTR Ringwraiths for obvious reasons, but they scare me more, I think. Probably because they weren’t created to do the bidding of a Dark Lord, though they do eventually help him out. They exist entirely on their own terms, and then people are dumb enough to try and manipulate them. (There was talk in the comments earlier about whether or not they perform the menial tasks at Azkaban, and the narration seems to indicate that they do. They are said to dig a grave at one point, and they do bring prisoners food.) Rowling claims to have come up with the idea for dementors while going through a severe bout of depression before the first Potter book was published. The sensation Ron mentions—that he felt he’d “never be cheerful again”—was pulled directly from her own experience.
Can you imagine what it would be like to be a first year Muggle-born student when the train was stopped by dementors? I think I’d go straight back home.
Interestingly, we’re never given a reason why chocolate works so well as a restorative after coming into contact with a dementor. But it’s not meant to be a scientific thing, like the antioxidants are at work, or what have you. Which means that Rowling straight up decided that chocolate was magical and had magical properties. Which might be one of my favorite choices in the entire series because it’s so obviously true.
The adults are seriously concerned for poor Harry, but he’s not having any of it because he’s so panicked over the fact that no one else had as severe of a reaction on the train. No one seems keen to give out information on the dementors, and I wonder if that’s more due to an information gap or a real desire not to talk about them. Either seems likely.
Once Harry’s out of McGonagall’s office, we can presume that this is where Hermione receives the Time-Turner. Sneaky, sneaky narrative. We finally get the announcement that Hagrid is a teacher now, and it’s a cuter moment than it has any right to be, with the applause and him being all bashful. And of course, if Hagrid’s name hadn’t been cleared of his alleged childhood crimes by the kids last year, there’s no way he would have been allowed the position. Dumbledore offers it to him immediately, and its strikes me that while we never see much between the two besides Hagrid’s blind devotion to Dumbledore, Albus clearly does love Hagrid very much. It’s something that doesn’t get talked about that often, but it’s so important to the structure of Hogwarts as a whole. Dumbledore trusts infant Harry with the half-giant, he gives the man a home and place in the magical world, he continues to look after Hagrid’s welfare. In a way, they are their own odd little family.
And despite that awful train ride, Harry feels that too. As soon as he hits his dorm room, he can relax at last. He’s home.
Chapter 6—Talons and Tea Leaves
Summary
Harry finds that the Slytherins’ favorite new game is to tease him about his reaction to the dementors. The twins try to cheer him, but Harry still wants to know why he was the only one to faint. Ron notes that Hermione’s schedule is too full (she has three morning classes that occur at the same time), but Hermione insists that she has it sorted with McGonagall, and she’ll be fine. The trio have a hard time finding the Divination classroom, and enlist the help of Sir Cadogan, a painting of a hapless knight.
They meet their Divination teacher, Professor Trelawney, who assures the students that books will only take them so far in the subject—you either have the Sight, or you don’t. This displeases Hermione greatly. Trelawney then has the students read each other’s tea leaves, but when Harry and Ron don’t do so well, she reads Harry’s cup herself and finds a series of bad omens, ending with the Grim; a great spectral dog, a sign of death. Hermione thinks that Professor Trelawney isn’t nearly so sensitive to the workings of the universe as she seems, and is vocally skeptical of her skill, a first for Hermione and teachers. When they get to Transfiguration, everyone seems fixated on Harry. McGonagall assures them that Trelawney predicts the death of a student each year, and no one has died yet. Ron is still worried though, and when Hermione tells him Divination seems a dodgy subject, he claims she’s just upset to find something she’s bad at. They stop speaking for bit.
Their next stop is Care of Magical Creatures, which they have with the Slytherins. Hagrid asks the class to open their books, but no one can. He explains that the books don’t bite if you stroke them on the spine before opening them, but realizing that his joke hasn’t gone over well puts him off. He retreats and brings out four hippogriffs, half-horse half-eagle animals. No one seems keen on approaching, so Harry does because he wants Hagrid’s lesson to be successful. Hippogriffs are proud, so you have to be polite to them—Harry does well, and Hagrid throws him on Buckbeak the hippogriff’s back for a short ride. It’s not the most fun in the world, but it does lead the other students to engage with the lesson. Everyone is doing fine until Draco deliberately insults Buckbeak, leading to a gash in his arm from the offended hippogriff. Draco milks it for all it’s worth.
The trio are concerned, so they head out to see Hagrid after dinner. He’s drunk and blaming himself for not starting with something easier, sure he’s about to be fired. Harry, Ron, and Hermione insist that it wasn’t his fault that they’ll stick up for him. Then Hermione suggests that Hagrid maybe lay off the booze, which leads to the gamekeeper sticking his head in a bucket of water to sober up. After doing so, he finally comes clear on the fact that they’re out after hours and scolds them, dragging them all back up to castle and insisting that they never come out late to visit again.
Commentary
Hermione’s course schedule is a great little mystery because it’s deliberately not as sly and hidden as the rest of the plot. We’re meant to know that something’s up with her, but there’s no way we can figure out what she’s up to, and it doesn’t spoil anything for the book’s ending to know that she’s got something up her sleeve. I remember having a lot of fun guessing at how she was managing it. Time travel was definitely at the forefront of my mind.
We get to meet Sir Cadogan, which is such a goofy aside. (FYI: he is meant to be a Knight of the Round Table, and was buddies with Merlin. Whaaaaat.) Of course, he becomes relevant later, but his helping the trio to the Divination classroom is such a perfect slice-of-life for Hogwarts. When discussing the rules for magical portraits in the comments, it was brought up that they function differently from photographs; they have to be taught to act more like their subject, to retain the information that the subject knew. Which means that Cadogan was either taught to behave that way (by the real Sir Cadogan), or that perhaps his personality is the result of being given little-to-no instruction. Considering what a parody he is of the standard “white knight” trope, the later explanation really appeals to me.
Okay, so Trelawney’s classroom is ridiculous, but… I would still love to have lessons there. Trelawney herself is such an interesting figure in the Potter mythos. We know that Dumbledore keeps her around because she is, very occasionally, right. Because she was the one who saw the upcoming war between Harry and Voldemort. On the other hand, the story does require that she be full of it most of the time, and she comes off that way from the get-go—no matter how accurate any of her predictions are, she’s doing what many fortune tellers and mediums have always done in their profession. She gives vague predictions and premonitions that can easily come true. It’s her conviction and the air of mystery that makes her seem legit. She talks about how that “thing” Lavender has been dreading will happen—which means that when a bad thing does occur on that day, Lavender will immediately associate it with the prediction. She makes a comment about Neville’s grandmother and him breaking cups—Neville is an incurable klutz (which would be easily discernible even at a glance) and assuming that he has a grandmother who might be in ill health is an easy sell. If he hadn’t had a living grandmother, she probably would have insisted that the prediction was meant for the person next to him.
I watched a lot of Crossing Over With John Edward as a kid. I know the spiel.
Also, Harry’s sass straight off the bat with Divination is just beautiful. See his and Ron’s first attempt at reading tea leaves:
“What can you see in mine?”
“A load of soggy brown stuff,” said Harry.
Also, this:
“When you’ve all finished deciding whether I’m going to die or not!”
Sorry, Harry. They’ll be wondering that for a next five years or so.
And of course, there is an element of truth in many of her predictions. The problem is that Sirius Black happens to look like a Grim in animagus form. It’s just a super unfortunate coincidence. Speaking of being an animagus, this is the first time we get the name for that ability, and the second time we get McGonagall’s transformation into a cat. (Her irritation over the class’ lack of reaction and snark at Harry’s death omen is one of my favorite McGonagall moments, easily.)
And then we get a great indication of the separation between kids from magic-born and Muggleborn homes. Not to say that Muggleborn kids aren’t susceptible to Trelawney’s way of thinking, but Ron and Hermione’s argument relies very heavily on Ron believing the Grim omen because he lives in the magical world and has encountered it. While his teardown of Hermione is undoubtedly mean (he knows that suggesting she wouldn’t naturally be good at something would press a button, and one that Trelawney has already hit, no less), it makes sense that he would take it personally when Hermione insists that his uncle died because he was essentially dumb enough to let a bad omen scare him to death. It’s one of those great moments where Hermione’s devotion to logic makes her markedly insensitive—something that’s really fun to see in a female character for a change. You do your Spock thing, Hermione.
Okay, I admit it. When Hagrid says that he thought the Monster Books of Monsters was funny, I tear up a little. It’s a perfect example of the disconnect Hagrid has with the general population in his love of big, deadly beasts, and we know that’s a source of a great deal of his woes and loneliness. And you know, the book is funny. It’s just a shame that the publisher didn’t bother to sell it with helpful petting directions taped to the front, so that everyone else could have appreciated such a Hagrid-y joke.
Hippogriffs are obviously awesome, being a modern wizarding equivalent to the gryphon. Apparently, you can breed “fancy” versions of them (Newt Scamander’s mom did back in the day), so in the magical world they’re similar to horses? Here’s something that is changed in the PoA movie that I actually wish they’d kept from the book; Harry really doesn’t like flying Buckbeak because he’s used the precision and control of a broomstick. Which makes sense, and also works better with Harry’s personality—he definitely prefers to feel personally in control most of the time.
Ugh, Draco. I’m always a bit impressed, truth be told, that he has no problem looking like a coward to get what he wants. Going on about how Buckbeak’s killed him, moaning and groaning about his wound when everyone around him can see that he’s fine. It’s a very specific type of manipulation that he essentially sidelines his pride for. It’s perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of Draco’s character.
And poor Hagrid. I don’t think it registered quite as sharply to me when I was younger that Hagrid always drowns his sorrows in booze. Alone. It’s treated a bit comically, but this time I was more cognizant of how Hermione cuts him off (through gentle suggestion because she’s still a kid). Good on you, Hermione. Someone has to take care of him. *sob*
Emmet Asher-Perrin still kind of wants to slap Draco when he gets all fake weepy, though. You can bug her on Twitter and read more of her work here and elsewhere.
I really like your suggestion about the sneakoscope.
The presence and role of the Dementors is about as damning a commentary on the Ministry as it’s possible to make.
I think “fast awesome” is as good a description as I’ve ever heard for the first few weeks after a wedding. May you and the missus enjoy many years of “fast awesome” together. :)
Also, of course chocolate is magic. Duh. Rowling didn’t have to make up everything for these books.
It always bothered me that even after Hagrid’s innocence was proved he still was treated like a failed wizard that wasn’t allowed to use a wand (except of course by Dumbledore, Harry, etc.).
Also, it bugged me that Dumbledore and the other professors seemed so blasé about having the dementors around. Clearly the dementors didn’t have the students best interests at heart, and in some cases seemed actively malevolent. But you know, no big deal. Just another danger for the students to deal with.
The book makes it a major point to mention that Dumbledore does NOT like having the dementors on the grounds – the ministry put them there, dumbles most likely had to reluctantly comply.
Even when I first read this, I was a little bit confused as to why Lupin was on the Hogwarts Express. Just confused, mind you, not complaining, because it makes for one of my favorite scenes in Potter (okay, they’re all one of my favorites).
In Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, I don’t think there was any mention made of teachers being on the train with the students. Nor is there any mention in the books after this. In fact, we see several school officials (including Hagrid in most books and I believe Filch and Flitwick in Half-Blood Prince) waiting for the students at the platform or the gates to the grounds.
So it could be that Lupin is on the train simply because he’s a new teacher, but then wouldn’t Lockhart, Moody, and Umbridge all also be on the train? Granted, Mr. Protagonist wasn’t on the train in Book 2 so Lockhart very well might have been, and Moody is mysteriously late. But Umbridge should most definitely have been on the train to Hogwarts.
Seems to happen to Ron and someone in every book from here out.
@3, I suspect Dumbledore asked Lupin to ride the train because he expected dementors to cause trouble.
@SerDragonReborn – My impression is that the only reason Remus is on the train is because he’s too poor to get another means of transport? Floo powder costs money. The Hogwarts Express is free, and he’s probably too weak to apparate if this is indeed right after a full moon. There’s definitely never another incident of a teacher on the train.
Thanks, Emily. Welcome back!
R.J. Lupin is The Man. Head and shoulders above every other DADA teacher (not that there’s much competition, except maybe Snape). By now, we already are familiar enough with the structure of the story to know that he’ll be central to the plot (the DADA teacher always is) but we don’t quite have enough to go on other than he’s shabby and sleeps on the train (and capable of fighting off dementors).
Hermione’s big reveal at the end wasn’t a shock. Like you, I suspected some sort of time travel was involved, especially given that Ron sees her with 3 classes all at the same time.
Hagrid is awesome. I was so happy he got a chance to be a teacher. He really deserves it, especially since he never got to finish his education due to Riddle’s accusation but has spent his whole life at Hogwarts, anyway. It’s the only home he knows, and magical creatures are his one true passion (the deadlier the better, unfortunately).
Trelawney is pretty funny. She’s frustrating at times, but she’s so cartoonish that I generally enjoy her appearances.
Malfoy sucks. Again. Film at 11.
The description of the effects of the dementors, here, with Dudley, and especially in Mrs. Figg’s testimony, is actually quite a precise definition of the effects of honest-to-God depression. It might just be the best one I’ve read in fiction, in fact; I’ve been known to show it to people to try to explain what the disease feels like. And more than one victim self-medicates with a big old Hersey bar, so chocolate being the antidote is a truly hysterical in-joke for sufferers.
McGonagall is my role model as a teacher. Enough said.
S
Why can’t Harry see the Thestrals? It’s even the same chapter where he starts remembering the death of his parents.
Emily @5: Combined with his shabby appearance and battered trunk, poverty was definitely my impression. Especially as a heightened contrast with Lockhart.
I never thought it was strange that Mr. Weasley would warn Harry off of looking for Black. Without knowing the family history it seemed very perceptive of him, actually. At this point Harry’s already been involved in thwarting Voldemort’s minions twice, both times by sneaking around behind the teacher’s backs, so it makes perfect sense that someone who cares would pull him aside and say, “Look, this guy is serious business, don’t think you can handle him alone even if that worked out for you last time!”
@3: I thought it was a nice touch that he was on the train – it seems he couldn’t afford another means of travel (and maybe can’t afford a room in an inn in Hogsmeade) so he travels with the students. The train is probably a “free” ride for him.
I remember sympathising a lot with Harry over the fact that he agonized over fainting on the train when no one else did. It was exactly what I would have felt if I’d done something embarassing when no one else had (and I have felt that way on occasions when I was a kid). And I did wonder how Hermione was getting to all her classes too. Though, time travel never crossed my mind, so it was quite a surprise when we learned about the Time Turner later.
@8: I think the thestrals are one of Rowling’s true mistakes. We can probably still fanwank it at this point — Harry doesn’t remember seeing his mother die — but by the end of GoF it’s notable mistake.
Hooray the Potter Reread is back! Intereseting thoughts on the sneakoscope, I think your spot on. I was so excited when Hagrid was made a teacher, he is such a perfect fit for Care of Magical Creatures.
I also really like Lupin and kind of wished Harry hadn’t gone off on him in Deathly Hallows and would have accepted his help in finding the Horcruxes. Being a werewolf in the Potterverse does not seem like it would be enjoyable in the slightest. I always wanted to know more about when Lupin went underground in the later books and was living with the other werewolves trying to get information about Voldemo…. I mean He Who Must Not Be Named.
Your wedding cake topper was epic, much better than my own.
Random observation – I recall an earlier discussion on whether or not the others were as close to Hagrid as the main 3. I couldn’t remember if we see evidence for that, but here it does say that the whole Gryffindor table applauds heartily at his promotion, in relation to the other tables.
I love Lupin. He was one of my favorites too :) My guess was that the suitcase was a hand me down…maybe the letters are part of the magic on the suitcase, but the suitcase itself is old.
I love Hermione so much in this chapter, ha. Even if she is a little tactless.
My husband I used to joke about Ron’s ‘cross’ and ‘sun’ meaning he’s going to ‘suffer, but be really happy’ meaning he’s going to end up a saint. Hah, Catholic humor, sorry ;)
Poor Hagrid – as an adult, there are definitely some sad elements to his character that are easier to pick up on now.
But it’s not meant to be a scientific thing,
Actually it totally is, chocolate effects the seratonin receptors in the brain, thus making you feel happy.
@5 There’s definitely never another incident of a teacher on the train.
Uh, Slughorn? And again, this could be financial, as we know he’s very talented. Or more likely, he wanted the chance to scope out new students for the Slug Club.
These chapters are really just setting the scene so to speak, introducing all the things that will come later, Buckbeack’s trial, battling dementors, introducing the Shrieking Shack(the Whomping Willow was introduced last book!), and the red herring with the black dog.
Lupin is the Man, yes, and I do think that yeah, he just altered the tag on his suitcase to reflect his new job. Since we’re all so curious if this is just after the full moon, was there any mention at what phase the moon was in earlier? Perhaps it’s noted to be a moonless night when Harry flees Privet Drive? Now I want to go back and see.
I too was wondering about Harry and the thestrals and have to agree that it was a mistake on Rowling’s part. Also tend to agree that Lupin was on the train at Dumbledore’s request to look after Harry. Dumbledore surely knew the effect the dementors would have on Harry.
Well, not sure he did a great job looking after him, since if Harry hadn’t happened to be in the car with him, not sure he would have known where to look, having slept for most of the ride.
I thought that the Sneak-o-scope went off because of Lupin. I thought he probably woke up when they came in, but was pretending to still be asleep. Evidence? Well, if he were actually asleep, the Sneak-o-scope going off would probably have caused him to wake up. Also, the way he sprang into action so readily when the Dementors showed up.
As I recall, in much early-to-mid-century British popular fiction, chocolate bars are second only to a nice cup of tea as a cure-all. I’m always astonished how heroes in Buchan-esque adventure stories and the more rugged mysteries seem to regard a large chocolate bar, possibly with nuts and/or raisins in, as the only thing necessary to bring along for sustenance on a backpacking trip. Given that the general mind-set of the wizarding world is so pre-war, as has been often noted here, the use of chocolate as a pick-me-up seems right in keeping.
@6
R.J. Lupin is The Man. Head and shoulders above every other DADA teacher
(not that there’s much competition, except maybe Snape).
I would put in a vote for Barty Crouch Jr. being a good DADA teacher also (even if he had less then friendly intentions).
Something that always irked me shows up in these chapters, the fact that more than half of the electives for third years are all at the same time.
It doesn’t matter for the narrative (the time-turner could have just been to keep up with homework, especially as Ancient Runes and Arithmancy seem to have much more coursework involved) But what if a student wanted to unlock ancient mathmagics? they would need Ancient Runes and Arithmancy but wouldn’t be able to take both, instead needing one of three, let’s face it, softball options. It just seems like they could have scheduled things better.
Theobromine. The food of the gods. They didn’t call it that for nothing.
Lupin is also my favorite. Not only is he not a bad teacher (a scale that runs from Binns to Umbridge), he is probably the best teacher they have, period. He knows how to get the most out of all of his students. He’s even able to get Neville to come out of his shell a little.
I’m with ShawnPCooke @17 in thinking that Lupin probably was faking being asleep and could have triggered the Sneak-o-scope. Or that is a red herring and we’re supposed to start worrying if Lupin is all that he seems. We’ll soon see that he has a dark secret, though it will take a while to find out what it is.
As a muggle, Hermione is probably preprogrammed to be highly skeptical and suspicious of anything that looks like fortunetelling. I’m sure she’s seen her share of church fete card readers and telephone pyschics. Plus, by the time they get to Divination, it’s probably getting close to bedtime for her.
@20, Ancient Runes and Arithmancy aren’t at the same time. IIRC, Arithmancy is with Care of Magical Creatures, and Ancient Runes are with Divination.
My question is how did that Ravenclaw Sixth year who almost gave them doxy eggs as a test booster, get more OWLS than they offer in classes?
@19,
While that is objectively true (as far as learning defensive skills is concerned), it also raises the Grand Canyon of plot holes (against which the thestral matter is a pimple by comparison): Barty Jr. taught Harry some very specific skills (like fighting off the imperious and cruciatus curse) that Harry used against Voldemort in the graveyard (if I recall correctly). But more about that next book.
@23, That could be under the purposes of intelligence gathering, and Crouch told Voldermort how well Harry would do, but Voldemort, being Voldemort, didn’t believe Harry could be that good, especially surrounded by an army of Death Eaters.
@2 re: Hogwarts teachers and Dementors. I think it is implied (and perhaps even explicit later in the book) that Dumbledore and the professors aren’t at all happy about the dementors being there…it is one of the first inklings we get that the Ministry of Magic is problematic…
@18: Chocolate, tea, and brandy. Always a bit of brandy to revive the spirits. But I guess Lupin was never going to offer that to Harry.
@20 – The options timetabling has never bothered me, because everyone signed up to their options in advance. The timetable would have been sorted during the summer holidays in response to those options – it’s pretty standard to do that in British schools for GCSE and A-level options, sometimes with certain limits on combinations, but not always (it does annoy me that they start options in 3rd Year that they basically have to do OWLs in, but never drop any subjects. That’s just setting the kids up to fail – they should do all the options for a year then pick two to take forward to OWL). Clashes can then happen if there happen to be two options that were never picked by the same person (for example, in my school anything except History, Chemistry and Classics could clash with Latin, as I was the only person doing Latin at A-level).
The issue is how suspiciously the options seem to have split along house lines, not that there are clashes. The clashes are only an issue due to Hermione, who has to clash anyway because of the number of options she’s doing. That even makes it okay that she has a Charms clash, as the other people she’s doing her options with are in different houses and so none of them would have Charms at that time.
It’s less convincing when it comes to the exam timetable, though. You’d expect, to avoid cheating, all students sitting a subject to sit it at the same time. So the fact that Hermione’s Arithmancy clashes with Transfiguration and Charms clashes with Ancient Runes *does* beggar belief. Which is not helped by the number of OWLs we hear of other people doing yet not seeming to need time-turners (not that we’re told of anyway, and it is implied that Hermione is a massively special case given the hoops McGonagall had to jump through for her to get one). There are some aspects of Hogwarts JKR *really* didn’t put enough thought into to get any sort of continuity.
RJ Lupin is *totally* the Man, though I don’t like how he was made all indecisive and annoying in HBP and DH. His character then just doesn’t seem consistent with PoA, or even the little we see of him in OotP.
I always assumed the Sneakoscope was for Scabbers, who’s very rarely actually near it when it’s not smothered in socks, and the fact that Lupin’s near it at that point on the train is a deliberate red herring to try to make us not trust Lupin, which failed because Lupin was just so brilliant in every way.
Just had to pop in and say you continue to kill it with these awesome re-reads!
Your analysis and wonderings regarding the HP Universe seriously makes me wish there were more books/movies set inside the Universe. I mean, who doesn’t want to just follow some Aurors around while they hunt Vampires and all sorts of crazy creatures???
As for Broomstick Drag Racing with crazy spell Turbos?? Come on – yes please.
Re: Thestrals, I remember Rowling mentioning in some interview that Harry was in his crib when his mother was killed, so he didn’t actually witness it. He just saw some green light.
She also addressed another death that Harry was present for that people tend to forget: Quirrell’s. In this case too Harry failed to witness the actual moment of death because he passed out.
Lupin was my favorite from day one, and my only real disappointment in the cast. Thewlis is a great actor,and did a good job, but I always hear Lupin’s words in Liam Neeson’s voice. I really wanted him to be cast in that role.
So hey are there any roles that any of you saw different?
Feeling a bit tired today, so post will be brief.
Re: Lupin’s suitcase, I’ve heard it theorized in HP fandom that before PoA Lupin was teaching in Muggle schools and never staying in one place for long. Now that you mention it, I think he was also doing other jobs in the MW.
BTW, I think this is the very last time we see McGonagall in Animagus form.
Am I the only guy in here who believes Crouch was responsible for the Ministry’s alliance with Dementors?
I ask for permission to henceforth refer to Lord Voldemort as He-Who-Doesn’t-Want-to-be-Named!
3/10 yes, Slughorn also rode the train – would agree (with 14) that it was likely free for a professor; while both could apparate for no cost, in Lupin’s case it likely provided a comfortable means of transport (including nap) and in Slughorn’s case, again, comfort without expense, plus, as mentioned, the opportunity for him to scope out Slug Club candidates. Additionally, for both, it likely made transport of luggage a no cost proposition?
Ginny is interesting just a summer after the entire Riddle possession drama, the dynamics when we briefly see the Weasley’s in the summer (or winter breaks) makes it likely that it’s an aspect of her personality due to being the sole female sibling and the youngest of the lot, plus the possibility Molly favored her (even if unconciously so) because she wanted a daughter. Even with very dense books, there are so many dynamics we can only guess at.
Lupin was a favorite, but McGonagall’s snark still mark’s her a spot above.
I would say that Dumbledore might have asked Lupin to be present on the train to keep an eye on the students incase of a clash with the dementors.
Owlay –
I’ve never heard the Muggle school theory, but I am a little skeptical because it’s one thing for him to be in a wizard school where they know what werewolves are and he can get potion and there are probably other magical precautions that could be taken. But at a muggle school? I suppose if it’s not a boarding school he wouldn’t have to worry about being onsite while he transforms, but he’d still be out of it for a portion of time each month. It seems like he would not be willing to take the risk.
I always assumed the sneakerscope went off because Lupin had woken up and was evesdropping on their conversation. He is certainly very much awake when the dementor enters the carraige.
I thought I read somewhere that Jo had a dream of a dementor when she was young (obviously not called a dementor yet) that just scared the c-rap out of her. That became the physical description for them.
@6,19: I agree, Crouch wasn’t a bad DADA teacher – he was an evil one. I think Harry remarks a one point in Order of the Phoenix that a servant of the Dark Lord taught him more on the subject than Umbridge.
@20: Considering how few students there are at Hogwarts, it doesn’t seem hard to design a time table that would allow every student to study what they want. But maybe it’s already taken into account, and only Hermione asked to study both Arithmancy and Transfiguration, or Charm and Ancient Runes.
Isn’t the reason the sneakoscope goes off that Lupin is pretending to sleep while listening to James’ son talking about Sirius?
“Trelawney predicts the death of a student each year, and no one has died yet.”
That’s really bad luck. Considering how dangerous Hogwarts is, it was highly unlikely that no one would die in 52 years.
So happy to have this back. And to have you back! Congratulations on your nuptials and amazing cake and all the other amazosity.
I have nothing salient to add, other than I forget how old I am sometimes, and then you mention teenage you reading HP, and I wish I’d have read them younger than at 26-33. Child and teen me would have appreciated them on totally different levels.
Excuse me while I go reread all of the Roald Dahls. Again.
Just a fun tidbit to add I’ve always been tickled about: not only is it awesome in general to see hippogriffs here, but the history of the animal is somewhat different than other magical beasts–namely that despite all magical beasts now seen as mythical, in the past the others (such as unicorns) were believed to be real but not the hippogriff. Because it was deliberately made-up as a creature deemed impossible to exist due to giant hunter birds seeing horses as prey, not mating prospects. So throughout the Middle Ages, hippogriff was seen as shorthand for something ridiculous and unbelievable (or…a “flight of fancy”? :D ) until along came Ludovico Ariosto, who created one for his epic poem Orlando Furioso. After which the creature became an accepted part of magical bestiaries.
The reason I find all this fun is that unless I missed something, Rowling never made mention of this at all–implying that to the wizarding world, hippogriffs were always known of and believed in, and it was just the Muggles who thought them to be make-believe (even while still believing in dragons and unicorns) which is rather hilarious.
The thing with the “peeling letters” on Lupin’s suitcase always bugged me. To be honest, I always thought that it was just a bit of sloppiness on JKR’s part (those small mistakes happen lots in the books, as they are bound to). Your explanation is cooler, though.
I also had a crush on Lupin, as a teenager. I’m glad I wasn’t the only one.
Athreeren @37: A nitpick: Trelawney has only been teaching at Hogwarts since shortly after Harry was born. She made the prophecy that caused Voldemort to go after Harry during her job interview with Dumbledore.
I’ve been revisiting the Potterverse recently myslf, and just finished PoA not too long ago. Having just stumbled upon this blog, I think I’m going to have to go back and read all your posts! How fun!
I wonder if you’ll pick up some of the same things I did later on in the book regarding Snape and his relationship with Sirius. I suddenly realized why Snape is so insistent on not only in catching Sirius himself, but letting him receive a “fate worse than death.” The kids, Lupin, and Sirius all seem to think it’s because of the near-death prank Sirius pulled on Snape when they were kids and that Snape is just kind of petty like that and won’t listen to reason, and yeah, that would probably make Snape hate the guy. But I think there’s a deeper reason for Snape’s hatred; he believes that Sirius is the reason Lily, the woman he loved, is dead. It’s never brought up in the book, but just knowing that Snape loved Lily Potter and fully believes Sirius betrayed her made me view Snape’s actions so much more sympathetically.
@42 That’s a great point and one that would onlyoccur to someone once they’ve read the entire series, but yes, it makes perfect sense. Although we don’t get that same hatred for Wormtail. Yes Wormtail annoys him, but he doesn’t have the seething hatred for him.
Yes, but at the time we see Snape interact with Wormtail, he is “under cover” and cannot let show the full force of the disdain he holds for him.
In addition, now think of how truly despicable Voldemort is, who knows that Pettigrew is responsible for Lily’s death and intentionally makes Snape have to deal with him.
@42 & 44 – I’d never considered that before, but that makes me think of Snape’s criticism of Harry during occlumency lessons in OotP:
Then you will find yourself easy prey for the Dark Lord. Fools who wear their hearts proudly on their sleeves, who cannot control their emotions, who wallow in sad memories and allow themselves to be provoked this easily – weak people, in other words – they stand no chance against his powers!
@45
That is quite possibly the saddest thing ever, as it sounds like Snape is talking from experience there. Snape truly was easy prey for Voldemort; his wretched existence up until then, wallowing in his hatred for James Potter and his general bitterness over life’s unfairness would have made him prime picking for Voldemort. Funny, the thing that ultimately turned him away from evil was his love for Lily, love being the one emotion Voldemort can’t understand.
Of course, this doesn’t excuse his poor treatment of Harry, Harry’s Friends, or generally anyone from House Gryffindor, but, well, baby steps, Snape. Baby steps.
At least one fan-fiction I recall proposed the possibility that a student did actually succumb to the Dementors: Sally Anne Perks only ever appeared at the very first Sorting Feast, so this story suggested a horrible reason why.
Very late commentary, but someone asked whether Lupin looked so ragged because he had changed into a werewolf the night before. The answer is probably yes.
According to this site http://www.calendar-12.com/moon_calendar/1993/september the full moon went from August 30th 1993 to September 2nd 1993. So, Lupin was in one of his changing weeks there.
Which makes things dangerous. What if the train is late and he sees the full moon? Does he transform? Or has he already drunk a potion made by Snape and delivered earlier by Dumbledore? He does get weeks off due to poor health after he drinks those potions during the term.
I really love Hermione and Ron discussing Hogsmeade here, knowing they end up married. I like to think of them trying to plan their holidays for years to come, with Hermione looking for history and architecture, while Ron just wants good food.
I just noticed something funny. every time somebody mentions dementors before they appear on the train they are simply referred to as Azkaban’s guards along with vague implications of unpleasantness, but after the train incident, everyone just calls them dementors. now if you were to ignore mystery for the reader as a factor and imagine that you live in this universe (many of you already do). you might notice that on September 1st, 1993 the entire community you belong too collectively decides to quit being weirdly ambiguous when mentioning dementors
Something I wonder about – what was the shrieking shack prior to it becoming, well, the shack? I know the willow, and presumably the passage leading to the shack, was put in during lupins tenure at hogwarts, but was the shack ever anything else? I haven’t played it in a while, but did Hogwarts Legacy ever draw attention to what it was 100-odd years ago?